GUILTY AZ - Leesa Shaner, 22, abducted & murdered, Tucson, 29 May 1973

shadowraiths

LISK Liaison, Verified Forensic Psychology Special
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Feb 16, 2006
Messages
2,875
Reaction score
178
LEESA JO SHANER, nee MILLER -
VICTIM (DECEASED),

On 5/29/73, LEESA JO SHANER was kidnapped from the parking lot at Tucson, Arizona, Airport.

[...]

LEESA's unclothed remains were located on 9/16/73 in the remote Garden Canyon area of Fort Huachuca, in a shallow grave in a dry stream bed adjacent to the rifle ranges. After autopsies the cause of death could not be isolated.

In 2003, FBI Director Mueller affirmed that the case will remain in an Open and Active Status until resolved. Former Special Agent James Miller passed away in 2007.

Full article: click here
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
Leesa Jo Shaner (nee Miller)
Abducted 29 May 1973 from Tucson, AZ
Body found September 1973, Fort Huachuca, AZ


Vital Statistics

Age: 22
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 115 pounds
Eyes: Blue
Hair: medium blonde, shoulder length, parted in middle.
Clothing: Last seen alive wearing a sleeveless navy blue pullover blouse with white trim, white levis, and brown sandals. Body was unclothed when found.

Circumstances:

Leesa Jo (nee Miller) Shaner was married to Gary Shaner, of the US Air Force, assigned to Kadena AFB, Okinawa. Leesa returned to Tucson from Okinawa to give birth to their son, and six weeks later, she, her newborn son, and 2 year-old daughter were at her parent's home awaiting Gary's return to the States.

Gary called Leesa at the Miller residence the eve of 5/29/73 and advised he would arrive in Tucson aboard a TWA flight from San Francisco at 10:15 PM.

A family celebration was in progress to celebrate Gary's return and their daughter's birthday.

Leesa wanted to meet Gary alone at the air port and left the Miller residence at 9:25 PM driving her father's 1972 cream over bronze American Motors Javelin. Arizona License RLH-291.

About 10:30 PM Gary called and reported that Leesa had not met him. Leesa's father, FBI Special Agent Miller immediately left for the airport assuming Leesa had car trouble en route. Meanwhile, other family friends searched alternate routes.

Gary and SA Miller searched the TWA arrival area then found the Javelin in the airport parking lot. The driver's window was partially down, and Leesa's purse with money was lying open on rear seat. Vehicle keys and parking ticket stub were not located.

No leads were developed in immediate searches by Tucson FBI, Tucson PD and Pima County Sheriff's Office.

Leesa's unclothed remains were located on 9/16/73 in the remote Garden Canyon area of Fort Huachuca (a large Army Base near Sierra Vista, AZ), in a shallow grave in a dry stream bed adjacent to the rifle ranges. After autopsies the cause of death could not be isolated.
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
http://www.kpho.com/news/20610909/detail.html

PHOENIX -- A Wisconsin man has been indicted in the 1973 slaying of an Arizona woman.

The U. S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, and the FBI announced Friday that William Floyd Zamastil, 57, has been charged with first degree murder in connection to the killing.

According to the indictment, Zamastil is accused of killing Leesa Jo Shaner, 22, in Fort Huachuca, Ariz., on or about May 29, 1973, while in the “perpetration of a rape.”

Shaner was last seen while she had been on her way to the Tucson International Airport to meet her husband, who was returning home from an overseas military assignment

Her body turned up four months later in the desert near Fort Huachuca, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Shaner's father, an FBI agent, made it his life’s work to find her killer. He passed away a couple of years ago. Another former FBI agent started a Web site to keep Shaner’s case alive.

Articles on the Web site say that Shaner's father even offered up $10,000 of his own money as a reward for information in the case.

Zamastil was been behind bars in the Waupun Correctional Institution in Wisconsin, serving a life sentence for the kidnapping, rape and murder of another woman, when he told a fellow inmate about Shaner's murder along with other crimes he'd committed, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice

In October 2008, the Wisconsin Department of Justice announced it had received a $500,000 grant to apply newer DNA technology to cold cases. Shaner's case was one of those selected.

Zamastil is now in federal custody pending trail, which could begin as early as October
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
This suspect would have been about 20 years old at the time of Leesa's murder. He was probably a soldier at the time, since her body was buried on Fort Huachuca near the rifle range.

I wonder how many others he kidnapped and murdered before he was finally incarcerated.
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
Wow this is amazing that they've hopefully found the perp after all these years. I too am thinking he was a soldier too..or at least had business access to FH. I wonder what clues there are that led up to him.
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
http://www.kvoa.com/news/38-year-old-cold-case-finally-closed/

38 year old cold case finally closed

Posted: Oct 20, 2011 5:19 PM
Updated: Oct 20, 2011 6:42 PM


Thursday the killer, William Zamastill learned his fate. He's already serving two life sentences for other crimes, but the Federal Judge gave him another life sentence; something local FBI agents said was long overdue.
 
  • Like
Reactions: d4j
TUCSON, AZ—William Floyd Zamastil, 59, of Waupan, Wisconsin, convicted of first-degree murder for the 1973 murder of Leesa Jo Shaner, of Tucson, was sentenced today to life imprisonment by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Frank R. Zapata.

Zamastil was found guilty by a federal jury on July 28, 2011, of killing Ms. Shaner on Fort Huachuca, Ariz., on or about May 29, 1973. Zamastil will serve this sentence once he has completed three other life sentences in Wisconsin and California.

“After 38 years, Ms. Shaner’s murderer has been held accountable for his horrific crime,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Ann Birmingham Scheel. “Our thoughts are with the family and friends who endured such a profound loss.”

FBI Special Agent in Charge James L. Turgal, Jr., Phoenix Division, stated, “The sentencing today of convicted murderer William Floyd Zamastil closes a very painful chapter in the lives of Leesa Jo Shaner’s family, friends, and the FBI family in Arizona. Leesa Jo Shaner, the daughter of former FBI Special Agent James A. Miller and Elizabeth Miller touched the lives of FBI employees and family members all across this country. Leesa’s family and the FBI never gave up hope that someday this case would be solved. The sentencing of William Floyd Zamastil can never relieve her family’s grief, nor does it lessen the pain of such a horrible event, but after 38 years, it does bring a sense of justice for Leesa.”

Ms. Shaner left her family home around 9:25 p.m. on May 29, 1973, to pick up her husband from the Tucson International Airport. When her husband arrived he could not find her. The car she drove to the airport was later found in the airport parking lot with the driver’s window halfway down, the car unlocked, and her purse inside on the back seat. Despite an extensive search, Ms. Shaner could not be located.

In September 1973, Ms. Shaner’s remains were found in a shallow grave on Ft. Huachuca, Ariz. Zamastil had abducted her from the airport and took her to a remote area on Ft. Huachuca where he raped, murdered, and buried her.

Zamastil is currently serving three first-degree murder sentences for crimes he committed in 1978 near Barstow, Calif. and in Madison, Wisconsin. He has been in custody since his arrest on August 2, 1978.

On August 1, 1978, Zamastil kidnapped a 24-year-old woman in the parking lot of a department store in Madison, Wisconsin. Zamastil saw the victim getting in her car in the parking lot, showed her his gun, and forced her to move to the passenger seat. He then drove approximately 15 to 30 miles away, where he raped and killed the victim. Zamastil was arrested and pleaded guilty to the rape and murder. He was sentenced to life imprisonment on the murder charge and a consecutive term of 20 years on the sexual assault.

While serving his Wisconsin sentence, Zamastil pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in California. On February 27, 1978, Zamastil offered a ride to a brother, 17, and his sister, 18, in Barstow, Calif., after their car broke down. The siblings were last seen at a gas station. Zamastil later drove them to a remote area of the desert about 13 miles from Barstow, and murdered them. Their naked bodies were discovered by a sheep herder weeks later. Zamastil pled guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and was sentenced to an indeterminate sentence of life with possibility of parole, to be served at the same time as the Wisconsin sentence. Zamastil is eligible for parole on May 1, 2013, in Wisconsin.

The investigation into Ms. Shaner’s murder was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution was handled by Sandra M. Hansen and Carmen F. Corbin, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona, Tucson.

CASE NUMBER: CR-09-1619-TUC-FRZ

LINK:
Man Sentenced for 1973 Murder of Tucson Woman
 
Last edited:

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
170
Guests online
2,403
Total visitors
2,573

Forum statistics

Threads
589,962
Messages
17,928,373
Members
228,020
Latest member
DazzelleShafer
Back
Top